Writers Strike Finally Over
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Late Night, Talk Shows, NBC, Saturday Night Live, News,
We can officially start the jig now.
After more than 3 months on the picket lines, the Writers Guild of America has finally announced an end to their strike. Of the 3,775 votes cast, 92.5% elected to stop the walkout. This means WGA members can resume doing what they do best starting tomorrow.
While it may be weeks before we see new episodes of our favorite shows, this news will immediately affect those programs that churn out daily fare. This means we should expect to see the return of late-night monologues ASAP. Meanwhile, the folks behind Saturday Night Live anticipate a brand new show come Feb. 23rd. (Of course, in true SNL fashion, that will probably be followed up by a repeat the following weekend.)
Of course, we could be revisiting this whole work stoppage issue again at the end of June; that’s when the current contract between SAG/AFTRA and the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers is set to expire.
But let’s just think happy thoughts until then, okay?
Variety
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The Oscars Backup Plan
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Award Shows, Prime Time, Specials, ABC, Gossip, Rumors,
The Academy has consistently promised that, writers strike or no, the annual Oscars ceremony will in fact take place. Statements have been released. Comments have been made. And until recently, the Academy seemed to be sticking to its guns. But…just in case, they’re working on a contingency plan.
Scheduled for Feb. 24, the Oscars show we expect may not at all be the one we see. For now, the Academy is working on two different shows. The usual awards spectacle is still in the works, but now a second show is being planned that will include “history and packages of film and concepts” that aren’t “normally ones that we would have.” Gee, sounds great. But no matter what, they say, the show will go on. It must! How else will Hollywood honor itself?
The Academy has made contact with the Writers Guild in hopes of inking some sort of deal.
MSNBC
2008 Screen Actors Guild Awards
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Action, Award Shows, Comedy, Drama, Prime Time, Specials, ABC, Cable, CBS, FOX, HBO, NBC, Showtime, TNT-HD, 24, Desperate Housewives, Entourage, Extras, Grey’s Anatomy, Heroes, House, Lost, The Office, The Sopranos,
Thanks to the cancelation of the Golden Globes ceremony, the hottest ticket in town was tonight’s Screen Actors Guild Awards. Without a picket line to cross, celebrities from TV and Film were allowed to celebrate - and commiserate - together for the first time in a long while.
For star-deprived fans, the SAG red carpet was also a treat for sore eyes. What were our favorite actresses wearing? What were the latest trends? Which dresses were going to be copied by Allen Schwartz tomorrow?
Unfortunately, the evening was not all about partying. The recent deaths of Suzanne Pleshette and Heath Ledger cast a somber tone on what would normally be a festive occasion. Thankfully, tonight was not about dissecting their lives, but merely about honoring them.
Meanwhile, the neglected winners of this month’s Globes were also hoping to get a share of the honors. If they were able to pull off another victory tonight, maybe they would have a chance to give the speech they already had written.
Well, without further ado, here’s the play-by-play of tonight’s events coming to you from the fashionably late West Coast!
Click to continue reading 2008 Screen Actors Guild Awards
Golden Globes Officially Canceled
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Award Shows, NBC, Cancellations, News,
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced today what most people have known for weeks: the Golden Globe Awards simply cannot go on as planned. Even though the WGA failed to grant the awards ceremony an interim deal, the show’s producers had still hoped they could somehow carry on. Unfortunately, the Screen Actors Guild put the final nail in the coffin last week. After being told their presentation would lack all nominees, the HFPA finally conceded.
Although there was hope for something a bit splashier, the awards show was officially scaled down from a three-hour gala to a one-hour press conference today. The dry presser - to be hosted live by NBC News - will air this Sunday @ 6pm PT. Why the news division? Well that’s because their writers work under a different contract.
While I’m sad I won’t get to see my faves in their finest, there is one good thing to come out of all this. Now we won’t have to see Rumer Willis in her awkward stint as the next Miss Golden Globe.
Why Jay Leno’s Monologue Must Not Go On
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Late Night, NBC, News,
Hey, even celebrities have to follow the rules - a fact that is being pointed out to late night host Jay Leno by many major media outlets. Here’s the deal: there’s an active writers’ strike going on, but the Tonight Show must go on anyway. At least, that’s the stand taken by NBC.
During a recent new episode of his late night show, Leno delivered a monologue and announced that he’s writing his own jokes. However, under Writers Guild rules those who are still on strike are not allowed to write for any studio’s project. NBC maintains they’re following the rules, while the Guild says Leno is a member and subject to all the strike rules therein - which means, no writing. The entire issue is now going before a union panel.
With all this itty bitty quibbling, it’s no wonder no one can seem to get any negotiations scheduled which might actually end this thing.
E! Online
David Letterman Returns With Writer Support
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Late Night, Talk Shows, ABC, Cable, CBS, NBC, Daily Show, The, News,
David Letterman has accomplished what no other late night host has managed to do: reach an agreement with the writers. Of course, owning your own company does have its perks.
Letterman and his production company, WorldWide Pants, have been sitting down with the Writers Guild for some time now in hopes of working out a deal. Late today, the two sides came to terms on an independent agreement that would allow both The Late Show with David Letterman and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson to come back on Jan. 2nd. Although the two talk shows will technically be competing with the returns of Leno, O’Brien and Kimmel, CBS will easily have the advantage. Letterman and Ferguson will be the only ones with the scripted jokes.
Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart will also be returning - sans writers - on January 7th.
Reuters
Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart Return to Work
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Late Night, Talk Shows, ABC, Cable, CBS, NBC, Daily Show, The, Announcements, News,
Comedy Central has just announced the January return of its two late-night talk show hosts. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert will ring in their new years on January 7th, five days after Kimmel, Leno and O’Brien have scheduled their starts. The Daily Show and The Colbert Report - like the ABC and NBC programs - will resume production sans writers. What this means for these ‘news’ shows and their largely scripted formats is unknown.
Stewart and Colbert, who are also members of the Writers Guild of America, released a joint statement about the decision:
’‘We would like to return to work with our writers. If we cannot, we would like to express our ambivalence, but without our writers we are unable to express something as nuanced as ambivalence.’‘
Meanwhile, we may get details later today about the plans for CBS’ late-night programs. David Letterman’s company, Worldwide Pants, will be meeting with members of the WGA today. If they can reach an interim agreement, both The Late Show With David Letterman and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson could also be hitting the airwaves - with scribes - come January 2nd.
No matter how you feel about the writers’ situation, what do you think about The Daily Show and The Colbert Report returning? Could they possibly be as good as they were pre-strike—or do you think the quality will suffer? Will you simply be happy to see them back regardless of the content?
Variety
2008 Screen Actors Guild Award Nominations (TV)
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Action, Award Shows, Comedy, Drama, Prime Time, ABC, Cable, CBS, FOX, HBO, NBC, Showtime, TNT-HD, 24, Desperate Housewives, Entourage, Extras, Grey’s Anatomy, Heroes, House, Lost, The Office, The Sopranos,
Take note. If you want to see your favorite actors and actresses lined up in their finest, this may be the gala to watch. Thanks to the relationship between the WGA and the Screen Actors Guild, the 14th Annual SAG Awards presentation will be allowed to go on as planned. (The same cannot currently be said of the Golden Globes or the Academy Awards.) So set your Tivo to TNT on January 27. This may be last time you get to see a group of actors celebrating together for quite some time.
This year’s television nominees are:
OUTSTANDING MALE PERFORMANCE - DRAMA SERIES
- James Gandolfini, The Sopranos (HBO)
- Michael C. Hall, Dexter (Showtime)
- Jon Hamm, Mad Men (AMC)
- Hugh Laurie, House (FOX)
- James Spader, Boston Legal (ABC)
OUTSTANDING FEMALE PERFORMANCE - DRAMA SERIES
- Glenn Close, Damages (FX)
- Edie Falco, The Sopranos (HBO)
- Sally Field, Brothers & Sisters (ABC)
- Holly Hunter, Saving Grace (TNT)
- Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer (TNT)
Click to continue reading 2008 Screen Actors Guild Award Nominations (TV)
Screen Actors Guild
Jimmy Kimmel Joins Late Night Returns
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Late Night, Talk Shows, ABC, CBS, NBC, News,
ABC has announced the return of Jimmy Kimmel Live, effective Jan. 2nd. The talk show will air new episodes the same evening The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night with Conan O’Brien also start anew. Despite their support of the WGA, all three hosts hope their participation can prevent other job losses.
Although an official announcement has not yet been made, CBS may soon be seeing a spark of life in late-night as well. David Letterman and his company, Worldwide Pants, are hoping to broker an independent deal with the union. This could allow his program and the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson to return with their normal writers in tow.
Hollywood Reporter
The Return of Late Night TV…Sort Of
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Late Night, Talk Shows, CBS, NBC, News,
Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien will be returning to work directly after the holidays, with new episodes scheduled to air Wednesday, January 2. They’ll be bringing late night entertainment back to TV, something that’s been sorely missing since the writer’s strike started.
An NBC spokesperson said that Leno and O’Brien still support their writers, but by returning to work will give hundreds of people the chance to do their jobs. Of course, the late night variety programs will go on the air sans writers, so there’s no telling what fans will get. Currently, no guests have been announced for either program.
Meanwhile, David Letterman and his company, Worldwide Pants, are hoping to broker a deal with the WGA. If the parties can work out an arrangement independent of the dispute with the producers, the Late Show with David Letterman and the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson could soon also be returning with writers.
Entertainment Weekly
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